Wirt the Woods Beast
by lastwriterofdreams
Summary: AU. What if Wirt had accepted the Beast's offer to put Greg's soul in the lantern? What if he became both the new Woodsman and and an extension of the Beast? What of Beatrice? What will happen to rest of the Unknown? Read, find out, Review.
1. Chapter 1

With the Woodsman defeated, and with Wirt holding both the axe and the lantern, the Beast set it's eyes on him.  
"Give me my Lantern." The Beast commanded.  
"What? No way! We need this thing!" Beatrice said immediately.  
"Yeah! I'm keeping this, I have to get Greg home." Wirt said, not wanting his brother to be in the Unknown any longer.  
"Your brother is too weak to go will soon become a part of my forest." The Beast explained connivingly.  
"I won't let that happen!" Wirt yelled at the Beast, as Beatrice tried to take the Edelwood branches off of Greg. The Beast saw Wirt's willingness to protect Greg and used it to manipulate Wirt.  
"Well then. Perhaps we better make a deal." The Beast said in a deceitful, but way that made it sound like the only other option.  
"Deal?" Wirt asked, wanting to save his brother more than anything. At the word deal, the Woodsman groaned as he remembered the Beasts similar offer to him.  
"I could put his spirit in the Lantern. As long as the flame stays lit, he will live on inside." The Beast paused as Wirt weighed his options. "Take on the task of Lantern Bearer?" Wirt was gesitant. "Or watch your brother perish?" The Beast added to make Wirt seem as if his options were even more limited. "Come here." The Beast commanded.  
Wirt surveyed the situation and decided that the Beast was right, Greg was too weak to go home, he couldn't fight the Beast, he did not want Beatrice to get hurt, and the Woodsman was laying defeated across the snow. Wirt sighed as he made up his mind.  
"Ok." He said in defeat, much to the Beast's satisfaction and Beatrice's surprise, and made his way to the Beast.  
"Wirt!" She called his name in an attempt to snap him out of it.  
"Wait! Beast!" The Woodsman yelled, and everyone stopped what they were doing to turn to see him on the ground. "The boy is not ideal, he has barely matured, you need someone who knows these woods and is seasoned with strength, not someone whose arms are thin as an Edelwood's branch." The Woodsman said in his tired, raspy voice, in an attempt to keep the boy from accepting the temptation of the Beast. "I can still take on that task." He offered.  
Everyone was silent at what the Woodsman said. The Beast contemplated his words. True, Wirt did not look capable of the task, but the Beast got an idea.  
"You are right, Woodsman." The Beast said. "The boy is inadequate, but so are you." He said, to the horror of the Woodsman. "You are old and struggling Woodsman, but the boy is young and will learn, eventually." The Beast made it's way towards Wirt, causing him to feel nervous. "I can change you Wirt. I can turn you into an extension of my forest and by default, me." The Beast said in a way that made it sound like an opportunity, rather than a damnation.  
"What do you mean?" Wirt asked, afraid of the answer.  
"I mean, that even if you went back to your side of the Garden Wall, you would still be a nobody." The Beast explained as he had full knowledge of how everyone ended up in the Unknown. "Are you sure you want to go back to that house? With a mother who gave you no choice in the abandonment of your father? Or a school with no friends? Or to even a girl that doesn't return your feelings?" The Beast asked Wirt as he kept bringing up more and more of the things he hated back at home. Wirt kept trying to convince himself that the Beast was wrong, but everything it kept mentioning was right, as well as the memories. This made him angry. "I can change you." The Beast put out it's hand for Wirt to take. "Shake my hand, don't be such a Worry Wirt." The Beast said as the final nail in the coffin that angered Wirt as he recalled all the times he was called that throughout his life. And with that anger he took a hold of the Beast's hand and grasped it firmly and shook.  
"No..." Beatrice said as she saw her friend make a huge mistake.  
"Deal!" Wirt yelled. As Wirt felt the Beast's hand, he was disgusted at what he felt underneath his palms, it felt like a smooth, but wrinkly woody surface, with empty orifaces.  
"Excellent Wirt." The Beast said but refused to let go. "I must warn you that this will hurt!" The Beast said as a sort of autumn colored energy began to envelope around Wirt's body.  
"Augh!" Wirt screamed in agony as he felt every part of his body twist. Every bone, every muscle, every nerve was shifting in place.  
"The Woodsman was right you know." The Beast spoke. "You are too weak to keep the lantern lit all by yourself. So I am changing you." The Beast's grip on Wirt's hand became tighter. "Your skin shall become as rough as bark, your blood shall become oil, your bones will be as strong as wood, and your eyes will be as white as the moon." The Beast said as Wirt's pores, ears, eyes and mouth began to excrete blood. The blood ran down his body as he screamed in pain. Wirt could feel the sides his skull grow horns and pierce through his skin, he cried in more pain as wooden antlers began to form from those horns.  
Beatrice was crying as she saw her friend in torture. However, as the energy circled around him, a pair of scissors fell out of his coat. Beatrice gasped.  
"The scissors!" She said as she got an idea. "You're going to be fine Greg." She told the unconscious boy as she swooped by Wirts legs and with her feet, took ahold of the scissors and flew into the forest.  
As all the blood from Wirt exited his body, it began to turn into a darker, thicker liquid, before going back inside of him through the places where it came out of. As soon as the process was done, Wirt looked like a rough wooden mannequin. He still retained part of his facial features, only he was as shrouded in darkness as the Beast, both only having white, unblinking eyes in their dark silhouettes.  
Satisfied, the Beast let go of his hand.  
"There, the process is complete. Everything you do and say, I will see and hear, you are now a part of me and the forest. You cannot die so long as you are connected to me." The Beast explained as it picked up the lantern. "Since it is your brother and to motivate you to keep the lantern lit, the flame will be on his teapot instead, so as you remember who it is you are keeping alive." It said as it transferred the flame of the lantern into the teapot where Greg used to be. Wirt saw this and became worried, because it was the same flame from the Woodsman's lanetern and not a different one.  
"Where is he?" Wirt asked. "Where's Greg?!" Wirt demanded to know as he approached the Beast, regardless of the pain he had throughout his body. As soon as he got close, the Beast moved its hand in a downward gesture as if commanding Wirt. Wirt was pressed hard against the ground by some invisible force.  
"You belong to me now." The Beast informed. "I can make you do anything I want, you are lucky enough that I even allow you be conscious." It said as it brought the Teapot, now with a flame inside, to Wirt. "Now, Gregory is in this special lantern for you to keep lit. You can use your own oil-blood to refill it if neceasary, or you can grind up the souls of those who lose hope in my forest. Either way, keep the Lantern lit." The Beast said with great conviction as it kept the Woodsmans previous lantern and disappeared into the darkness of the Unknown. After the Beast left, the area became bright again, not in the sense that the sun was up, just that there was an absence of darkness.  
The Woodsman stood up, took a look at.  
"I tried to warn you boy. I tried." He said and ran.  
Silence. Wirt was alone and on the ground.  
He looked at the Teapot with the flame. His empty, and lifeless looking eyes began to tear up with oil.  
"It's all my fault Greg." He sobbed. "It's all my fault."


	2. Chapter 2

A bluebird was flying through the forest as fast as she could. She knew she couldn't go back to Wirt, at least not yet, or alone.  
The Unknown was a mysterious place for every citizen, creature, and whatever else you could possibly imagine living within it. But there was one such item that held all of the answers that one might need. The Tome of the Unknown.  
Beatrice had heard stories of the book from her family, but whether or not it was real, a legend, or a myth altogether, she knew that it was one of the few things that held the possibility of a better Unknown at this moment. With two Beasts roaming around the Unknown, one could not be just careful anymore, but prepared. She stopped as soon as she felt safe and put down the scissors and stretched out her wings.  
"This all better be worth it." She said.

* * *

The Woodsman kept running through the the forest. Ironic how one who knew such woods, now feared what it contained. As he kept running, he came across a dirt road that split into two paths, one around the woods, and the other to a tavern. The Woodsman decided it was best to take refuge in there. When he got to the door, he pushed it open with full force and whatever everyone was doing inside stopped and looked at the Woodsman.  
"It's the Woodsman."  
"Where is his dark lantern?"  
"What is he doing here?"  
These were among some of the whispers he heard from everyone as they saw him.  
"Well sweetie, what brings you round these parts?" The tavernkeeper asked in her sweet accented voice, which completely contrasted the Woodsman's own raspy one.  
"You aren't safe anymore." He said. He tried to look at everyone in the tavern, only to have them look at him in worry.  
"Why is that?" The Butcher asked.  
"Because the Beast has a new victim!" The Woodsman yelled to emphasize.  
"Hey! You can panic as much as you want, but you will not raise your voice and disturb the peace in my tavern." The tavernkeeper exclaimed to keep the peace and quiet in her tavern. "Now, how's about you get youself a soft drink and you can tell us all bout that news you got." She said.  
The Woodsman took a seat next to the tailor.  
"It's always bad news for me." The tailor whined as he sobbed. The Woodsman just looked at him, with annoyance. Everyone had gathered around the Woodsman in order to hear his story.  
"The Beast has taken a new apprentice. A boy in a red hat, the Beast tricked him into becoming his servant to save his younger brother, but I fear it was in vain." He explained.  
"You mean the Pilgrim?" The master asked. "A short boy who told us that you gave him directions on how to get home. He was lost more than ever." He said accusingly. "How do we know you didn't lead him to the Beast?" He asked.  
"I'd watch my accusations if I were you, or else someone will start swingin'" The Woodsman warned.  
"Hey! No roughhousing in my tavern, I already have enough to clean without you two clods to add to my work. You will behave in my tavern or get out." She reminded one last time. The Woodsman and the master glared at each other before the Woodsman continued to explain.  
"That boy...is not human anymore. He is burdened with keeping the lantern lit, and the Beast disappeared in the trees." The Woodsman recalled.  
"This is worst than a metaphor." The tailor sobbed.  
"What of the youngest brother?" The midwife asked. The Woodsman sighed.  
"I don't know, he disappeared along with a frog and talking bluebird." He said.  
Suddenly, the door to the tavern opened again. This time a redheaded girl with a blue dress stepped in. She looked determined.  
"I need help." She said as she looked around. The tavernkeeper approached her kindly as she swept the floors.  
"Hey there sweetie whatch-" She began,  
"Woah!" Out of instinct, the girl jerked away defensively from the tavernkeeper. Everyone looked at her as of she grew a second head. "Don't hit me with your broom!" The girl warned.  
"Don't be silly darling, I only hit animals that bring good and bad luck in my tavern." The tavernkeeper explained. The girl looked at her hands and remembered she was human.  
"Oh, right. Sorry." She said.  
"Now who are you?" The tavernkeeper asked.  
"My name is Beatrice, and I need help. My friend has just given himself up to the Beast, and I need to set him free." She said.  
"But I just came from watching a boy turn himself over to the Beast, I didn't see you there." The Woodsman explained.  
"I was there! I just...you didn't see me." Beatrice thought carefully about this, if she went around saying she was a bird turned human, people might accuse her of witchcraft, or worst, working for the Beast. The Woodsman recognized her voice and decided to keep quiet. "I need to know if anyone here knows anything about the Tome of the Unknown." Everyone just looked at her for a moment before bursting out laughing. This angered and embarrassed Beatrice as her cheeks became red. "I'm serious!" She yelled, but it sounded like a whine to everyone else. The tavernkeeper and the Woodsman were the only ones who weren't laughing.  
"Tome of the Unknown huh? What, you're also going to look for the stork that drops babies in chimneys at night?" The baker mocked.  
"Listen here ginger snaps, we don't know what it you're tryna pull here, but if you wanna scam us, take tips from the Highwayman." The apprentice jeered. The Highwayman stayed silent. Beatrice bit her lip in anger.  
"Hey! Stop that! I'm trying to save my friend and by extension you all!" She yelled as she teared up, everyone still laughing at her.  
"Enough!" The tavernkeeper yelled, and the whole tavern got quiet. "This girl just asked an serious question and you all just mock her?!" She asked sarcastically, her face showing anger.  
"We just havin fun." The Butcher. "We all know the Tome's just a fairy tale." He said trying to justify his mocking.  
"There are two beasts out there that turn people into edelwood and you want to talk about fairy tales?!" The Woodsman asked as he slammed his fist on the table. Beatrice nodded at them to thank them for their support.  
"Look here, I heard the Tome has everything that has been forgotten, there's a good chance we can learn something about the Beast, and how to save my friend." Beatrice said. She bit her lip as she thought about losing both Wirt and Greg to the Beast. "I want to help them, and I'm sure everyone in this room has someone else they'd do it for." She said and everyone in the tavern looked at someone else as confirmation. "I just want to save him." She said honestly, trying to hold back her tears. The tavernkeeper put her hand on Beatrice's left shoulder and the Woodsman's on her right one.  
"Don't worry." The Woodsman said. "We will." The tavernkeeper confirmed. "There is a small cottage in the woods that is said to have the Tome. But I'd be careful if I were you. There is a girl who eats the bodies of her victims, and an old beastly woman who commands her." She informed Beatrice.  
"Then that's where I'll go." She said.  
"No alone you're not." The Woodsman said. "I will help you out with you burden." He smiled fatherly at her.  
"Then it's settled." Beatrice said confidently.


	3. Chapter 3

On a foggy winter afternoon, a creature sat against a tree, holding a glowing teapot in one hand, and an axe in the other. The creature had a sad look of misery in it's empty eyes.  
'Everything you do and say, I will see and hear, you are now a part of my forest'.  
Wirt remebered that statement. He knew he couldn't refuse the Beast. He was now its slave, cursed to harvest lost souls to maintain his brother had been a couple of days since his transformation, and damnation to continue the Beast's burden. And Wirt had not moved from that just sat there, looking at the clearing where everything happened.  
Wirt knew that if he wanted to keep his brother's flame lit, he'd have to use Edelwood oil from souls he'd have to harvest in the Unknown. However, there was a certain loop hole he found he could do, at a certain price. Rather than hunt and harvest the souls for the lantern, he decided to use his own oil-blood to keep the flame in the teapot lit. Although he was no longer human, Wirt refused to give the Beast the satisfaction of harvesting souls in the form of Edelwood trees.  
The Beast was slightly annoyed by this little act of defiance, but as long as the flame stood lit, it could've cared less. Regardless, it approached Wirt about it, and appeared in front of him from behind a tree.  
"You do know that the more you use up you're own oil-blood, the more oil you'll need to keep yourself and your brother alive." It spoke in a convincing tone.  
"I don't care. I am not hunting down others." Wirt said.  
"You say that like I can't make you." The Beast pointed out, raising his hand to prove a point. Wirt didn't react, he just kept staring off in the distance.  
"Then what would be the point of having me if you're gonna control me yourself?" Wirt said, with an emotionless point. The Beast thought about it, and figured it was a good point.  
"True. But the more you use your own blood, the more souls you'll have to collect to keep you and your brother alive." It said as it vanished into the dark of the woods.  
Wirt looked from the distance, to Greg's teapot.  
"What should I do Greg? I know you wouldn't want me to hurt others." Wirt spoke to the teapot. Part of him knew that the flame couldn't talk, another hoped it did speak to him in Greg's innocent voice, and a third part of him wished he could've brought him home. Wirt coughed. "It doesn't matter." He told himself. "What's done is done, and eventually I'll have to hunt." He said. He used the blade of the axe to cut his root like skin and poured his oil-blood into the teapot lantern. "But for now, let's enjoy what's left of my humanity."

* * *

In a farther side of the woods, there was a girl and a man, traversing through the woods to find a small cottage, said to be home to beings that held the Tome of the Unknown.  
"So the cottage is somewhere around here right?" Beatrice asked.  
"That's what the tavernkeeper said." The Woodsman answered. "So what do you plan on doing when we find the Tome?" He asked her.  
"Well..." She paused. What if it didn't exist? Would she give up? Find another way? "If it exists, then I guess I'll find answers on what the Beast is and does." She kept walking. Fortunately for her, the tavernkeeper let her borrow a set of mud boots for traveling the damp ground of the forest. As for her dress, she just ripped it from the bottom so it wouldn't get dragged and stuck against other things. "So how did you know Wirt, are you two related?" She asked him, trying to make small talk.  
"To be fairly, honest, I didn't even know his name. I just wanted to make sure he and his brother didn't end up in the Beasts clutches." He explained. "Truth be told, I too was given the same offer." He admitted. It suddenly dawned on Beatrice that he had the lantern back then.  
"Is that why you're helping me? To get him back?" She asked.  
"Yes, I did not want anyone to do that monster's bidding, especially against their will." He said. Beatrice nodded in agreement.  
A few ways down, they found what seemed to be an old broken down cottage in a clearing.  
"Do you think its where the people eater and beastly woman are?" Beatrice asked. They quickly hid behind a stone garden wall.  
"It seems like it, the tavernkeeper said they would be in a cottage in the woods." The Woodsman said. "But now that I see it it's more of a shack than anything." He pointed out. Beatrice checked around it to see if anyone was outside.  
"No one is out here. Do you think they're inside eating people?" She asked morbidly, much to the Woodsman's dislike.  
"I would rather they didn't..." He said.  
"What are you trespassers doing here?" They jumped up in fright as a ghastly looking, rather large, woman appeared behind them.  
"It's her!" Beatrice pointed out in fright.  
"Run!" The Woodsman said as he took Beatrice by the hand and ran her to the shack. As soon as they reached the door they opened it, entered the shack, and locked it from the inside.  
"We should be safe in here." The Woodsman said as he and Beatrice walked away from the door facing it.  
"Who are you?"  
They heard from behind them. They turned around and saw a girl in puritan attire. "Why are you here?" She asked nervously.  
"There's a scary lady outside!" Beatrice said frantically.  
"Scary...lady?" Lorna asked. There was a knock at the door.  
"Lorna? Please open up the door." Said the woman.  
"Yes Auntie Whispers." Lorna said nicely and obediently as she made her way to the door.  
"Stop, that lady is still out there!" Beatrice warned.  
"You mean Auntie whispers?" She asked as she opened the door for her. Beatrice and the Woodsman were now officially terrified.

"Oh Lorna. Sweet child, thank you for opening the door for me." She said a she patted Lorna on the head. "And who might these strangers be?" She asked open mindedly.  
"I thought they were your guests, Auntie." Lorna stated. Both Beatrice and the Woodsman were astonished at Tue casual conversation the two in front of them were having.  
"What the-" The Woodsman began.  
"What are you doing in my home?" Auntie Whispers asked.  
"We..." Beatrice began.  
"We're here to get the Tome of the Unknown. We've heard that you might possibly have it..." The Woodsman Whispers looked hesitant.  
"Lorna. Make us some tea, please?" She asked.  
"Yes Auntie." She said with a smile as she went to do as she was told. Auntie Whispers sat down at a table and gestured Beatrice and the Woodsman to sit.  
"Now what is all this commotion about the Tome?" She asked. Beatrice looked down in sadness.  
"I was hoping you'd have it because..." Beatrice bit her lip. "A friend of mine gave himself up to the Beast. And I feel as if the Tomb will be the only thing that can help me bring him back..." She said. The Woodsman tried to stay level headed as he tried to explain it too.  
"A boy gave up his life in order to save his brother from the Beast. And now they are both an extension of it." He said. A gasp could be heard from behind all of them. They turned to Lorna.  
"Has Wirt...fallen victim to the Beast?" Lorna asked in worry. Beatrice was surprised to hear his name coming from someone else. Beatrice stood up.  
"You know him?!" She asked. Lorna nodded.  
"Him and Gregory and their frog." Lorna laughed softly at the memory of them.  
"Yeah. That's them." Beatrice rubbed her eyes as she felt relieved that at least they knew the brothers. "I was hoping you'd have the Tome of the Unknown. So that I could find out about how I can help Wirt in anyway." Beatrice explained.  
"Of course I'll help." Lorna said as she lead Beatrice to the book.  
"Your daughter/niece seems nice." Auntie Whispers and the Woodsman said at the same time.  
"Oh! She's not my daughter/niece." They said at the same time again.  
"So how are you connected to the boys?" She asked him.  
"Oh, I tried to lead them away from the Beast. I did the bidding of the Beast before the boy." He said with regret.  
"Oh I know what it is like to have to be tied to someone you hate. I have a sister myself who frankly I don't approve of." She said.  
"Is that right?" He asked sarcastically.  
Beatrice and Lorna came back in a bit with the Tome of the Whispers looked at Beatrice.  
"Child. I must warn you. That book contains hidden knowledge of the Unknown. When Lorna read it, she was possessed by a sort of spirit. Are you prepared to find out what lies within it?" She asked with a look that challenged how much she would be willing to work to help Wirt. Without hesitation Beatrice nodded. "Then you may read it at your own risk."  
"Beatrice opened the book to reveal several kinds of symbols, drawings, and explanations of certain things residing within the Unknown.  
"Who wrote this book?" Beatrice asked.  
"Nobody knows. But whoever it was, certainly knew what they were talking about. It is filled to the brim with information on all kinds of creatures and figures of the Unknown." Auntie Whispers said.  
"Do you see anything in there that might help get Wirt back?" Lorna asked in worry as Beatrice read entire pages of it simply by skimming, determined to find something that could help her. She suddenly paused on a page and raised her eyebrows in surprise.  
"Yes."

* * *

 _I apologize for the long wait, I have no excuse to say why I didn't continue this immediately. But I do have an ending in mind and am working on another story too. I will try to focus on this one as well. Do not worry._


	4. Chapter 4

In the tavern. There was commotion on the whereabouts of a Woodsman and a red-headed girl searching for the Tome of Unknown.  
"She may be a witch." Someone said the Master in concern.  
"Or she could just be running in a circle. That book's a myth." The midwife said with an indifferent tone at the severity of said woman.  
"But what if what she said about an apprentice for the Beast was true? What then?" The tailor asked in fear.  
"You should be careful what you say about her, she ain't cried in front of us for nothin', give her the benefit of the doubt." Said the Butcher in good hope.  
"The lot of you shouldn't really put too much thought into this." Said the Tavernkeeper. "We are more than capable of defending ourselves if need be." She said with a knowing grin as almost everyone had something that more or less could be qualified as a weapon.  
"Good." Said a familiar voice that caught everyone's attention, as they had not noticed her presence, or the man next to her's, in the room. "Because I have to ask all of you one more favor." She said as she held a black book in her hand. The Woodsman standing next to her.  
"Because we are going on a hunt." He said.

* * *

Outside of Pottsfield stood a lone figure, axe in hand. A stressed look on it's face. It looked like a walking tree that hasn't been watered in years and was in the process of decomposing.

"No...please don't..." A fragile and whimpering voice said.

"You have no resistance for my bidding. You used up almost all of your own oil in your attempt to refrain of using my gift. If you don't replenish that oil, you will become useless not only to me, but your brother as well." Another voice said, seemingly out of nowhere, but it was heard within the head of the figure. The figure was struggling in vain to resist its own movements, only to make its own walk appear more menacing. Said figure would have cried oil, but it's body was nearly dry and needed more. Once it made it to a busy part of the town, it stopped.  
In town, many pumpkin folk were going about their daily lives. Some took the occasional glance at the figure. Some in interest, others curiosity, and others paid it no mind.

"Hey there stranger what brings you to our humble town?" One of them asked.  
Wirt stood there. Hoping he'd be strong enough to resist the Beasts will. Unfortunately, it wasn't so.  
Without warning, Wirt unwillingly raised the axe over his head and swung it down on the pumpkin wearing citizen. Normally, the concept of death and pain in Pottsfield was subject to humor, as they were all skeletons underneath. However, with the eerie presence surrounding the boy, they had reason to think twice. They all watched in horror as the pumpkin shriveled and rotted around the skull of the skeleton. The man himself was screaming as if some unknown force were hurting him, all before it was clear that he was nothing but a pile of bone ash and pumpkin paste. Wirt stood still for a moment, and the remains of his victim became a black liquid that made its way into Wirt. The way water is absorbed in the ground, the black liquid was absorbed into him, which made his dry and withering, bark like skin, stronger.

Wirt felt almost intoxicated. The oil seeping through his artificial veins made him feel rejuvenated. As if he had gone by days without food or water and now he was feeling more satisfied, the more oil he took in. Momentarily letting go of his inhibitions as he began to cut them down, like a macabre gardener.  
It was at this point, that the towns folk went from their serene and busy atmosphere, to one fear and panic. Many tried to escape the wrath of the cloaked, axe-wielding boy. No one had recognized him, as his skin was not organic anymore. As some more were cut down and others ran into the safety of their homes, one managed to get to the barn of the town, where a tall, spender being was unawares to the outside going-ons.

"Enoch! Some maniac is attacking our town, he's turning them into oil!" The citizen screamed in understandable fear.  
Enoch rose up from the ground, a sort of anger radiating from him as he made his way to the center of town.  
Wirt has cut down several pumpkin folk, and his own cloak drenched in rotting pumpkin paste. He looked around and something in him snapped, causing to look around at the very horror of what he has caused.  
"Oh no..." He fell to his knees as he saw many clothes on the floor that were deep in decomposed carved pumpkins, who appeared to have faces of fear, pain, and misery. "I-I don't want to do this anymore!" He yelled at the Beast, who was nowhere in sight. Now that Wirt had oil in his body, he began to cry it through his eyes, only to have it be absorbed on his cheeks once it teared from his eyes. Wirt began to stand up against his will, picked up the axe, and began to run away from the town. Confused, he asked the Beast. "Why?" He asked, still crying.  
"Because Enoch is on his way." The Beast said in his head. "Your body cannot withstand his attacks at this point. You're still too weak." The Beast said.  
"...I know..." Wirt replied, hoping he remained this way. Weak, so as not to be able to hurt any one but to keep his brother alive in the teapot.

 _Elsewhere._

In an emergency room were two boys in hospital beds. Both were unconscious, one with a frog laying on top of the youngest. However, the smallest of the two opened his eyes tiredly and looked around the white room, before turning to look at his at his brother in concern.  
"Wirt..."


	5. Chapter 5

# Wirt the Woods Beast 5 #  
Wirt was making his way through the woods. Looking for the clearing where he accepted the Beast's offer. He was planning to help on staying like that the entire while and give up his new oil to keep the teapot lit.  
"I'm sorry Greg...It's all my fault." He sat against a tree and fed the teapot oil. For quite some time, he has been wondering what has happened back where they came from. He missed his mother, Sarah, even his step dad and classmates. But he then began wondering what happened to those he's met in the Unknown. What of the Woodsman, the Endicott's, Miss Langree and her school, Lorna and her Auntie Whispers.  
As he was pondering, the Beast's voice entered his head and spoke to him.  
"You need to get up, boy. We have trouble coming our way..." It said ominously. Wirt stood up and picked up his axe.  
"What's going on? What kind of trouble?" He asked worriedly as he began to run. As he was about to make a turn, Wirt saw the trunk of a tree explode. "What was that?!"  
"It is a weapon used by men in a futile attempt to kill me...but as for you..." The Beast became silent.  
"A weapon used by men-" Wirt's eyes widened at the realization of what it meant and ran faster. "They have guns?!" He asked the Beast, who he thought would heed his call, to no avail.  
"There he is!"  
"Get him!"  
"Spill his blood!"  
Wirt distinguished several voices amidst his escape as he concluded that it most certainly was a mob or a man-huNT of sorts. As he looked back, he saw many people holding torches, pitch forks, sickles, and other farming tools that could be used as weapons and some had primitive looking rifles. More like muskets, really. The more shots Wirt heard, the harder he forced himself to run. The Teapot Lantern being kept safe at his hip.  
As he ran, Wirt heard another shot,,followed by a burning sensation on his shoulder. As he looked at his shoulder, he saw torn ligaments, where his bark like skin was, it was now replaced with a hole by a bullet that forced itself through his body. Wirt began to panic for a moment as he kept running, only to see oil drip from the ends of the wound and replace the hole with a new shoulder. Wirt looked at himself in surprise, causing him to slow down and admire how quickly he healed, a mistake on his behalf, but an advantage for another as he was shot through the back.  
Wirt winced in writhing agony, as what followed was a volley of bullets shot at him, several hitting where they aimed, others hitting around him. Wirt fell to the ground, his healing slowing down due to the amount of wounds in his body, but he felt the oil force itself to heal him, making the slow process of it more painful. And where it couldn't do it, it just spilled out of his body.  
"You don't have enough oil, stupid boy." The Beast scolded him. "Now you're in a situation where your brother is going to disappear." Wirt struggled to get up on his feet and laid against the nearest tree and tried to keep out of sight from the mob.  
"Where is he?!"  
"He couldn't have gone far!"  
"Follow the Oil trail!"  
Wirt grunted silently in pain as he looked up at the white moon with his equally blank and shining eyes. As he looked up, he saw a figure pass through the night sky. It was brief and he surely would have missed it if he looked a moment too late.  
As Wirt kept looking, he failed to notice the mob appear in front of him.  
"Here he is!"  
The voice snapped his attention back to in front of him and his white orbs widened as he was surrounded by several people. Upon closer inspection, he noticed that some of them were the people in the tavern that he's met before.  
Before he could raise his arm, they began to stab, cut, hit, and shoot him. Wirt kept quiet as he had no way of reacting to all this pain happening all at once to him. He noticed that they were only attacking his chest.

Elsewhere in the woods, the Beast was making it's way to Wirts location as fast as he could. That boy was the only thing keeping the lantern alive. And the Beast would be damned of it allowed this to go on.

Back with Wirt, he could feel himself loose all the oil he earned the previous day at Pottsfield. He felt his frame wither and dry as he looked like a human twig, the life from his eyes draining. And at that moment, it all stopped. The mob stopped attacking him, and a girl in a beautiful victorian dress, with red hair in the style from the Regency era approached him. At that moment, Wirt lost consciousness and his connection to the Beast was cut temporarily.  
"Is he fully drained of oil." She asked with a pained look as she looked down at his fragile form.  
"Yes. We cut it out of him, look at him, he's dry." A man said as he pointed down at him.  
"Good, bring him to the Old Grist Mill." She commanded and the mob lifted Wirt up. "Do not forget the Teapot, or the axe." She ordered and they picked up both items.  
The Beast had arrived shortly after Wirt was taken away. The Beast looked at all of the oil spilled from Wirts wounds and began to absorb it from the ground into itself. Strengthening it's already immense power.

"We've got to do this now!" Beatrice said. The mob had followed her and the Woodsman back to the Old Grist Mill. "We need to do the procedure before he wakes up, or the Beast will know his location." She said as they placed his body onto the red couch by the fireplace. The Woodsman approached Beatrice and put his hand on her shoulder.  
"Are you sure you want to go through with this? There may be no turning back..." He warned as she held the Tome of the Unknown . Without hesitation, she spoke confidently.  
"Yes." And opened the Tome of the Unknown and began reading an incantation out loud. However, as she was enchanting, there was a moment of dread befalling the entire house and some of the people looked out the window.  
"It's pitch black!" The Master yelled. As he looked back out the window, it was quiet and eery, causing him to become uneasy. Suddenly, two bright orbs appeared in front of him with blue eyes and before he could yell and jump back, the entirety of the wall and window were obliterated. The dark figure with its unblinking and white eyes made it's way inside.  
"You have something of mine." 


	6. Chapter 6

Where the wall once stood, now remained a massive hole, pieces of debris blown into the room of Beatrice's old home, and many injured residents of the unknown were in the wake of the Beast that had been the cause of such raw devastation. Beatrice remained where she was, trying to focus her attention once more in the incantation as the dark creature made its way into the house, silently but noticeable to everyone around him.

"You have my pawn, and I intend to make sure he remains as such." The Beast said in its deep, unhindered voice, full of threat. It made its way over to Beatrice, maliciously. Eyes fixated on both his pawn and the red-headed girl. Its white eyes, ever so bright focusing on their target like a predator does its prey before bringing it down.

Beatrice could only grow more nervous as she continued to speak the spell, attempting to keep focus of the importance of it and pushing back every frightened stutter that could form in her voice as she read. Beads of sweat began to pour down the side of her head, a clear sign of fear and anxiety as she was completely vulnerable and in the sights of such a dangerous creature. As neared the last words of her spell, a shiver went all throughout her body as the multiple breaths of the Beast were right behind. She wanted to let out a shriek mid-spell when suddenly-*

"You will not lay a single accursed hand on that boy, do you hear me?!" Said the Woodsman, who had picked up a rifle musket, equipped with a bayonet and stabbed into the hide of the Beast, who let out an depraved and unearthly screech. The Woodsman, with rifle embedded in the shrieking Beast, turned to Beatrice. "Finish it now!"

Beatrice quickly finished the last of her spell from the Tome, and a sky glow burst from Wirt's eyes and mouth, filling the entire Grist in a nearly blissful and fulfilling light. His veins glowed within his body and from his pores, much oil began to expel itself from them. After several moments, Wirt woke up and immediately howled in pain at the awakened sensation. The Beast, forgetting the pain, wretched from an even worse pain. Clearly tied to Wirt not just mentally, but physically, the Beast swung its hands towards the Woodsman, the impact of which was strong enough to have pushed him into the second floor of the house.

The Beast rushed toward Beatrice, and managed to scratch both and reach for Wirt's hip. Ripping off a noticeable wing from the small of her back, causing her to yelp in pain and turn to him in what appeared as innocent fear. It stopped once it looked at her, its momentary anger and pain soothed at the mere sight of the girl. Noticing a long forgotten beauty from a much fantasized past of innocence. She quickly shouted another spell and suddenly, the three of them disappeared from the home, leaving a stunned crowd behind.

"What happened..?" Asked the Woodsman as he fainted.

* * *

The Beast appeared in a just outside the town of Pottsfield. Confused, the dark figure looked around and recognized the calm little town. Next to itself, was the teapot, still containing the flame, and the torn feather from the girl that ruined its intent. The gorgeous red haired, blue winged beauty.

 _Yes._

The Beast told itself. This winged beauty had caught its own interest. It needed to see her again. A new, yet expected feeling crawled throughout its body. A much more desired evil than its usual conniving plans. The intent of wanton desire, ignited further with every incoming thought to its perverse mind. That would have to wait, however, as it remembered its pawn was also of concern. It concentrated on finding Wirt, but found out the vessel between them had been severed. However, it could still sense his existence in the Unknown, though his exact location would remain a mystery to it. The Beast looked on yonder at the faint town, knowing full well what its pawn has done previously to some residents the day prior. If it could grin, it would, the gears of its next plan were already in a motion, full of a conniving deceit. It picked up the teapot with the light and held it up like a once famous poet did when addressing the cranium of deceased beloved. It then looked at the cloth of the dress that belonged to that girl. Such a contrasting creature to its own horrid appearance.

"It is time to pay my old friend Enoch a visit. Greg." And the Beast laughed.

* * *

Wirt could feel the pain subside in his body, only to be overwhelmed by the feeling of a weight equal to his on top of him. He looked up to see a very beautiful woman not much older than he, who's mere presence would have caused him to blush. In contrast, her look of disbelief at looking down at him did not change the fact that her natural blush, which complimented her dying autumn hair, only caused his heart to reach several times a second. He quickly gulped down his nervousness, never having been this close to a girl who he was even familiar with. In good manners, Wirt thought it best that he should let her introduce herself to him. She looked down at him and slapped. Hard.

"You idiot!" She yelled. "Do you have any idea what your stupid decision did?!" She slapped him again once more. "The amount of pain I felt thinking I lost my only two friends!" The girl continued to slap him repeatedly in her passionate onslaught. "I thought you were gone forever..." Tears began to fall from the edges of her eyes.

"Um..." Was all the boy could manage to say. What else could he say, he had no clue who this violent beauty in front of him was. Yet, her voice was strangely familiar to him. "O-oh my g-gosh! Beatrice?!" He asked in shock.

"Yes! Who else in this forsaken place do you know would have helped you out the way I did?!" She continued to cry. "You are the biggest idiot in the Unknown! And I'm a close second for choosing to have helped you out!" She continued to ventilate.

"Beatrice!" Wirt began with a stutter, yelping with each hit. "Believe me, you have no idea how much I regret doing what I did. I wish I could take it back!" He admitted to himself and her, for the first time having talked to someone other than the Beast since the entire ordeal began. Suddenly, something strange, yet familiar dawned upon him. The voice no longer existed in his head, nor did the overwhelming weight of control that had been constantly above him for the time that it had. For the first time in what seemed like an infernal eternity, he felt liberated. Wirt's eyes began to water, and he quickly crashed over Beatrice to give her a powerful embrace. "Beatrice! Thank you so much!" He cried tears of joy. "You saved me, I'm free now, thanks to you! Thank you so much Beatrice!" He stuttered in sobbing excitement.

Beatrice paused as she heard the sincere gratitude of her awkward friend. Suddenly, she replaced her emotions of anger and distraught, with happiness and joy as she hugged her friend.

"I had doubts Wirt, I thought I lost you..." She sobbed silently.

Both friends continued their embrace for what seemed like hours. Both their arms tiring eventually, causing them to lean into one another by their foreheads. Wirt was the first to open his eyes and look down at her blue dress, stained with a traumatizing black.

"Beatrice!" He stuttered. "Your dress!" He warned.

"What?!" She pushed him back and looked on her shoulder where he cried. A black, ink-like, substance smeared from her shoulder all the way down to her forearm. "What is this?" She wiped some of it off with her fingers and took a closer look. "Oil?"

"What?! That's impossible! I feel normal, I shouldn't be infested with that stuff, not anymore! You changed me back to normal..." Wirt panicked as he tried to convince himself everything was going to be alright. This caused Beatrice to flinch in unwanted anticipation.

"Wirt...I didn't fully save you from the Beast..." She admitted, and then pointed down to a stream, causing Wirt to realize where it was that they were. In some open area separated by the middle by a running stream. He quickly rushed over to the stream, nearly tripping several times along the way, to look at his reflection. As he got to the stream, he fell to his knees to get a closer look. To his horror, he had not changed physically, for he still had the dark, rough skin. The moon white eyes, the protruding horns from his skull and a much darker and viscous liquid running from his eyes. The only physical difference being that his pupils had reappeared in his eyes once more, giving him a minor hope for his returning humanity. Wirt sighed and fell on his back to calm down and take deep breaths. Beatrice walked up to him and sat by his side.

"Listen, pushover, the Tome I used to save you, it didn't have the answer we wanted, but it did have the help I needed to save you." She explained as she looked down the river. He turned to her.

"I'm not unthankful for what you did...I just feel horrible and stupid for being the cause of it all." He admitted.

"Well, you should and you are." She let out a soft chuckle. In turn causing him to do so too.

"You're right. But I'm glad you came back for me." He smiled. "Is there anyway to set everything else right?" His smile faded as the reality of the situation came back to haunt him. She looked down at him with a smirk and a raised eyebrow.

"You didn't really think I'd save your butt and leave everything else the way it was, did you?" She asked sarcastically. Causing him to smile once more.

"I certainly would have when we first met." He shot back in surprise of himself.

"Look at you growing an attitude." She jested. Causing them both to laugh. When it died down she began another explanation. "Listen Wirt, the thing I read, I don't fully understand it. But this girl in a cabin and her aunt told me about which spells would help me out the most. The one I used to free you...It only worked partially."

"What do you mean?" He asked as he sat up to fully face her.

"When you accepted the Beast's offer, you willingly gave up your 'soul' to it. Meaning your existence in the unknown has become fully dependent on the Beast as a host." She explained. "You completely gave yourself up its mercy."

"But the spell you did, it freed me, that must mean it worked right?" He pondered.

"No, you're forever dependent now in the unknown. What the spell did is it bound your 'soul' to someone else." She said as she began to grow anxious in the revelation of her explanation. The wind in the Unknown created a natural sound between them to cover the silence before Wirt's next question.

"I'm bound to you now, aren't I?" He asked, already knowing the answer. Beatrice smiled.

"Yes."

* * *

 _I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and I do apologize for not having updated this story in a long time or Samaritans for that matter, I can't fully say that I'm in that much of a mood to write consistently yet, but know that I am growing an interest again. Thank you for your patience, and I will see you all next time. And happy Third Anniversary of the month OTGW premiered._


	7. Chapter 7

Wirt took a moment to take the new information in. He laid back onto the ground with his hands over his eyes before sitting back up to face her.

"This is a lot to take in. Why did you combine mine...with yours?" He asked, promptly earning him a shove.

"Because there weren't any other people I could trust you to be bound to." She said, a little miffed by the question. "Besides." She looked away. "Beggars can't be choosers." She sighed.

"Well...I'm guessing that spell must have come at some sort of price, right? Like with the Beast he was able to control and see through my eyes...what kind of things can you do with possession of my...soul?" Wirt asked as he realized just how strange that sounded out loud.

"Well..." Beatrice said awkwardly. "The spell I cast wasn't like the one the Beast cursed on you. Instead of me owning you, we're sharing souls now like...husband and wife share a home. There is no privacy, what happens to one the other will know." She said, shying away from him as she mentioned marriage.

"Husband and wife..?" He asked, once more receiving a shove from Beatrice. "Ow!" He whined.

"Don't take it so literal, loser. It was just a metaphor to explain the effect better. And as for price...it really isn't much to worry about as long as both of us are careful. I won't invade your privacy like the Beast did. But you should know that my pain." She paused as she took out a needle from her pouch and stuck it quickly into her finger before retracting the needle and blood. "is your pain. And from what the witch and her niece told me of this spell..." She then pointed to her wings. "Is that for every fatal blow you suffer, I lose something of mine that is finite. Like the feather's on my wings...if the last feathers fall, I disappear...but it doesn't specify what happens to you. Except that each fatal blow until then shouldn't truly kill you." She explained as she took out the Tome and got to the page with the spell she cast. "See?" She pointed to the drawings and incantations.

"That's insane! Is there anyway I can help besides...not dying for lack of a better word?!" He asked with anxiety beginning to return to him.

"Not that I know of Wirt...sorry." She sighed before punching him in the shoulder. "Don't die on me...seriously." She chuckled confidently so as to calm him down.

"Beatrice! I don't know what to do! This is all so sudden! I don't want to get you killed!" He exclaimed standing up, clearly his anxiety rising with every second.

"Wirt shut up! You're going to give me a migraine. Look this is a good thing." She stood up after him and held his hands in her own and turned his face to hers. "Use that to motivate you to strive forward and avoid as many fatal blows as you can!" She inspired him. "Look, just because I saved us now, doesn't mean we're out of the woods yet!"

They both paused for a moment to acknowledge her choice of words.

"Terrible pun! But Wirt bear with me! Right now we have to keep moving to explore what your abilities are exactly. You still have the Beast's abilities! The Woodsman's Axe! And I'm sure you can make use of the oil in your body somehow!" Looking into his eyes, she brought them back down in a kneeling position. "Our best bet is to take down the Beast for good. With your abilities and this Tome, I am positive we can kill it and fix this whole mess!" She finished her rant as she took the time to take a deep breath, and let the redness in her cheeks subside, as if she wasn't red enough already. Wirt looked at her like she just turned back into a bluebird.

"That's your plan?! Kill the Beast and all this will be resolved? How many worms have you been eating?!" He asked, panicking once more, but out of anger at her ridiculous plan.

"Oh! So you have a better plan, pushover?! I would love to hear what sort of leads you got!" She at back with her arms crossed over her chest. Wirt bent down and held the sides of his head to think.

"Well for one, without me, the Beast still needs to get its own oil again, and the lantern became the Teapot Greg had and he's still in it!" He stood up. "Maybe if we steal the lantern back, I can save Greg and then-"

"Then what?!" She pushed. "That still doesn't get rid of the Beast, Wirt!" She sighed in exasperation. "Listen we need to come up with a plan. One that's better than the one's we just said."

* * *

The Beast was making its menacing way into the Town of Pottsfield, under its dark facade, it carried a monstrous sneer, secretly smirking at himself for already concocting plans to make the unknown his own. As he approached the town more and more, a darkness fell upon it and all the citizens noticed the change of a bright day to a cloudy gray day. The citizens quickly took hold of their torches and lit them, when suddenly one of the citizens that was just at the edge of the town screamed.

"The Beast! Everyone get Enoch!" He yelled and ran to the safety of the center of town. Where many of the citizens sought shelter.

"The Beast is entering the Town!"

"Where is Enoch?!"

"What shall we do?!"

"I can't die again!"

These were the panicked phrases that were heard throughout the town as they all began to allow the fear seep through their bones. Suddenly, a large figure sporting a pumpkin head with streams as fingers appeared.

"Citizens, citizens, please keep calm. I shall heed to the situation." Enoch spoke with a calm vigor. Really, he was slightly less nervous than the rest of the town, but knew he was the best sort of defense for them. He began to move toward the edge of the town, along the road, the townsfolk following a few yards behind him with torches and farming tools to support him if need be. Enoch quickly turned around to address them. "Please, everyone, allow me to deal with this alone. I cannot have any of you be laid to rest again. I shall be back. Now wait patiently in the barn where we hold our Harvest Festivities." He said to the dismay of the townsfolk, but they put their faith in their leader without question. As they walked away, he made his way toward the Beast, both tall and lean figures opposing the other, each contrasting the other nearly perfectly.

"Enoch, how very nice to see you." The Beast said as though it had a forked tongue covered in sap. "I see your peers truly have their faith in you."

"Enough with the false pleasantries, Demon. Why have you come to our town?" Enoch spoke with a threatening tone. "Need I remind you of what happened the last time you chose to quarrel with me?" Enoch smirked as his streamers let out a near snake-like hiss.

"Bite your rasped tongue, cat." The Beast glared at the pumpkin entity. "I have control of my lantern once more, I can take as many souls as I want by simply touching them now. So you best behave yourself like the domesticated cur you are." The Beast said. Enoch frowned and his streamers appeared to grow in length, as did his height.

"You think your little flame scares me?" He towered over the Beast in a hunched form. "Don't forget who guards these lost souls from your wrath. State your purpose or I will put that fire out." Enoch spat. The Beast looked up at its adversary, not a hint of fear in its eyes.

"I simply came to strike a deal with an old friend." It said as though it were selling a remedy.

"I don't see one." Enoch retorted.

"Regardless, I am here on business that concerns the entire unknown. I am sure you know that a few days ago a different type of Beast found itself in your town and stole the unlives of some of your kin." The Beast reminded him.

"I take it you have something to do with that. In which case I will rip the souls out of your orifices!" Enoch said as it was about to attack it.

"Calm yourself. I do not have them. I simply came here to inform you that it was a rogue apprentice of mine that did what he did. You see, it found a way to break the soul bond, but it still relies on oil to live. I am here for assistance." The Beast spoke.

"And why should I help you right your many wrongs?" Enoch questioned.

"Simply put, this concerns the rest of the Unknown. If it managed to get some of your souls, it will surely do it again. And no matter how vigil you become, one by one, your kin will disappear to his hunger. You're a shepherd with a wolf outside its land, and your sheep will be mauled when you least expect it. Fortunately I am willing to put down this wolf down, for a fee." The Beast smirked inside its mind as it made the perfect metaphor to fool Enoch, who paused as it realized the truth behind the Beast's words.

"And what fee would that be?" Enoch asked. The Beast struggled to hide its malicious chuckle, Enoch was in his grasp.

"All I ask is for the fleece of your sheep to spring a trap on the rogue maniac. In other words." The Beast turned to the field, as did Enoch. "I require loan of some of your previous souls. The ones you couldn't bring yourself to resurrect." The Beast smiled as it looked throughout the field at all the potential corpses buried within it.

"They rest in permanent peace, Beast. Something you will never know." Enoch said as it turned back to it. "I see passed your sale. You wolf in sheeps clothing." Enoch suddenly reached out his streamers to take hold of the Beast's waist in a tight grip.

"It is merely a loan Enoch. I'll pay them back. They'll be brought to you as though they were in new conditions. Granted you let me add my own charm to them." The Beast spoke in an even more forked tongue. "The way I see it, we can both put down a common threat. Without this rogue beast to steal souls, you will be able to save more of them, and I will be able to have them all for myself." The Beast ended its speech as Enoch paused for a moment and released it.

"These souls will not be for you after your unholy pilgrimage, cur. My rules are that you cannot use these souls to harm any other souls in the unknown. You may not attack other towns or places of high population." Looking at the field, he dug his many streamers into the soil and green lights flowed through the field as though they were weeds, before multiple skeletons rose out and the Beast held out its to curse the souls of the resurrected, causing them to grow inorganic and putrid flesh as several of them clawed their way out of the soil, carrying farming tools. Enoch looked away and began to head back toward the town. "Bring them back when you killed your mistake, or I will give chase. And we both know I have many lives to spare to end yours for once. Now go. Leave this town." Enoch said as it made its way back into town, leaving the Beast with its new herd of servants.

"Fool." It said as it walked back into the forest, its many souls behind it as the sky became nearly blood red and the moon orange. "The hunt begins."

* * *

"This can't be good..." Wirt said as he and Beatrice looked up at the sudden change of color in the sky.


End file.
